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IN THE FOLLOWING DAYS, Rosalind and Thomas enjoy a perfect courtship. On the first day, he drops by her house with a massive bouquet of roses, large enough to be the envy of Rosalind's younger sisters. Rosalind thanks him profusely, and with blushing cheeks, she assures him gifts aren't necessary.
On the second day, they traverse London's Hyde Park on horseback. There, they discover some common interests: cats and music. Thomas promises to invite her to his sister's musicale, while Rosalind promises to introduce him to Minx and Manx, her matching gray cats.
On the third day, I can safely say they're smitten with each other. Rosalind misses him when he's gone, and Thomas can't wait to see her again. He even introduces her to his mother, who, despite a lack of faculties, is eager to meet her son's favorite lady.
Upon seeing Rosalind for the first time, his mother asks, “Is she your wife?”
“No, Mother. Miss Banks is a dear friend of mine, but she isn't my wife.” Casting a smile in Rosalind's direction, he adds, “However, I would be extraordinarily lucky if she was more than a friend.”
His mother says, “Well, you better hurry up and marry her soon! You're not getting any younger, and if you wait much longer, I might not live to see it.”
Though Rosalind and her beau laugh at his mother's reply, it seems to have an adverse effect on them. Their conversation is stilted for the rest of the day.
Ben accompanies me on the first and second days of Rosalind and Thomas' courtship, but not the third. I don't blame him. I can't consider our mission a success until Rosalind accepts a proposal, and until then, I expect our days to be tedious. For now, I live for the little moments, like Amy declaring, “It's not fair! Lord Featherstone isn't half as attentive as your Mr. Weston. If he really cared about me, why hasn't he come?”
On the fourth day, I wonder if I should accept another mission while we wait. After all, we're trying to find a husband for Rosalind, and that could take some serious time.
I barely have time to consider a second mission, because an unexpected turn of events has me warping back to Ben and banging on his door. He greets me in an unbuttoned shirt, jeans, and a face that says, “I dare you to resist me.” He looks cute, and he knows it, but I'm not here for that.
“Button up your shirt, Ben. We have to go!” I exclaim. “Rosalind has another suitor.”
“What? Who?” Ben asks.
“I'll explain when we get there. Go!”
I'm probably making this more dramatic than it needs to be, but a second guy in Rosalind's life is the last thing I expected.
Ben and I warp to a sitting room in Rosalind's cottage, where her surprise suitor is still on his knees, kissing her hand. He's younger than Mr. Weston, more polished than Mr. Weston, and arguably handsomer than Mr. Weston.
Poor Mr. Weston.
“Marry me, Rose!” cries the man on his knees. “Do you remember what we said when we were children? If we were both unmarried by the time we were thirty, we would marry each other. I know we're still a few years away, but why wait? In my heart, I've always known you were the perfect woman for me, and I don't think any amount of time could change that.”
Rosalind's eyelashes flutter as he kisses her hand, again and again. Quietly, she says, “But this... this is so sudden! Why did this idea come to you now, of all times?”
“My cousin Gerald recently passed. Do you remember him? He used to play with us when we were children,” says the unnamed suitor. “Shortly after his death, I saw him in a dream, and he told me to marry you.”
Across the room, I see the puppeteer of this unlikely turn of events. It's Archangel Jeremiel, the Archangel of Dreams. He's sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed, and his long blonde hair is pulled back in a ponytail.
Jeremiel's primary job is to help the recently deceased send messages to their loved ones. He can pierce the veil to help a spirit's voice reach the other side, and no one has mastered the art of entering a mortal's dreams better than him.
“Kaylene?” Jeremiel greets me with an enormous smile on his face. “How lovely to see you! Is Miss Banks your charge?”
“Uh... yeah,” I reply. “Um... what are you up to, exactly?”
“Oh, I'm just following up on a request,” Jeremiel says. “Who's the handsome fellow?”
“Ben?” I think that's who Jeremiel is referring to, but I have questions of my own. “Who's the guy who just proposed to Rosalind?”
“That's Edwin Clyde, her childhood friend,” Jeremiel explains. “I helped his cousin make contact with him recently.”
I miss some of Rosalind and Edwin's conversation, but it doesn't seem to be going well. Rosalind says, “You show up after all this time and ask me to marry you? Don't you think that's a bit absurd? If it's not absurd, then it's definitely sudden. And... why would you want to marry me because of a dream, or because your cousin told you to? If this is ever going to make sense, you must want to marry me!”
“I do!” Edwin insists. He's still on his knees, and his palms are squashed together in a prayer-like position, as if he's begging her to accept his proposal. “I needed a nudge from Gerald before I realized what I wanted. I'm tired of gambling and opera dancers and... w-well, I probably shouldn't have mentioned the opera dancers.” Edwin gives his necktie a nervous tug. “My point is, I've lived a debauched life, and I've grown tired of it. I'm ready to settle down with a good girl. I want you.”
“Yeah... I don't like this,” Ben says. “I think Rosalind was better off with the Weston guy.”
Finally Ben and I agree on something! If Rosalind accepted Edwin's proposal, our mission would be complete, but it wouldn't feel right. However, if we encouraged her to continue her relationship with Mr. Weston, we would be going against Archangel Jeremiel. Pissing off a high-ranking Archangel is the last thing I'd want to do.
“Marry me, Rosalind!” Edwin begs. “Marry me, be mine, and make me the happiest man in the world!”
“You know, it's been a year since I've seen you, Ed. An entire year!” Rosalind exclaims. “You can't show up after such a length of time and expect me to fall into your arms!”
“But I adore you!” Edwin insists. “I adore you now, I adored you when we were children, and I'll adore you for the rest of my life. Marry me, and I swear you won't regret it. Will you consider it, at least?”
Of course, Jeremiel champions the idea. He says, “I think you should marry him, Miss Banks! Edwin Clyde has everything you could want. He's handsome, wealthy, and you have a rich history together. What more could you ask for? And honestly... how many other offers of marriage do you expect to get?”
Jeremiel's intervention makes Rosalind pause, and I can't bring myself to challenge my superior. Like Ben, I prefer Mr. Weston. He was our choice—but should we wait to see what Rosalind wants?
“I will... consider your proposal,” Rosalind says. “Can you give me some time?”
“Of course.” Edwin kisses Rosalind's hand a few more times before rising from the floor. “You can take all the time you need.”
“Do you really mean that, though?” Rosalind asks. “Would you wait another year for me to decide?”
“Of course. I would wait an eternity,” Edwin says. That sounds a bit far-fetched, so I peek into his thoughts to find out how he really feels.
Why would she need more than a few days? Anyone would think she was getting the better deal. She should consider herself lucky.
And that's all I need to hear.
From now on, it's Mr. Weston all the way.